VBA, COM and OSI:

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VBA, COM and OSI

• Building the Digital Nervous System

Neil Charney Senior Product Manager Microsoft
Corporation
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Microsoft Is About Two Things

• Outstanding products
• Outstanding partners

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Leveraging Partnerships
Microsoft
Microsoft OSI
Microsoft Partner
Microsoft/OSI Partner
Community
Community
Standards
Standards
Marketing
Marketing
Tools
Tools
RD
RD
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Todays WorldComplex Pieces - No Integration
Core IT Infrastructure Enterprise Data Legacy
Systems
Remote Systems
Server
Extranet Customer Access
Windows 95 Office 97
Windows 95 Office 97
Multiple Applications, Multiple Data Stores
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Digital Nervous System
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Up-to-datepersonal computer
Internet, Intranetconnections
Commonproductivitysuite
Building ASuccessfulNervousSystem
Rich, reliableelectronic mail
Integrated LOBapplications
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Digital Nervous System Building Blocks

• Up-to-date PC
• Common productivity suite
• Rich, reliable messaging
• Internet connections
• Line-of-business apps that work together

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Visual Studio 97

• Comprehensive
• Scalable
• Open

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Visual Basic for Applications
Bringing the power of Visual Basic to Applications
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Visual Basic for Applications

• Professional development environment
• Access to application functionality
• Tight integration with user and application
  events (open, close, click, etc.)
• Support for ActiveX components
• Fast performance - Up to 200X faster

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VBA Milestones
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Demo
Visual Basic for Applications

• Microsoft Excel

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Office 97 TCO Study

• Study of Office 97 Early Adopters
• Over 300,000 desktops
• VBA development generated 50 cost savings
• Leveraged existing developer resources
• Customized and automated business processes
• 75 planning solutions with Office and VBA

Source Giga Group 1997
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Case Study CIGNA PC

• Problem
• Time and labor-intensive report creation,
  rekeying error prone
• Goals
• Leverage existing investment
• Reduce production and training time, increase
  reliability and accuracy
• ROI
• Save 20,000 person-hours with increase overall
  accuracy

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CIGNA PC Past Process
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
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Demo
Visual Basic for Applications

• Cigna PC

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VBA Milestones
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Broad Industry Support for VBA
Engineering
Manufacturing
Development Tools
Data Analysis
CAD/CAM
Project Management
Simulation
Vertical Components
Help Desk, Document Management, Corporate
Applications
Accounting, Customer Management, ERP, Data
Warehousing
Microsoft Office
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VBA and COM Building the Digital Nervous System

• Integrates multiple line of business applications
• Customizes off-the-shelf software to respond to
  changes in requirements
• Leverages existing data, equipment,
  infrastructure and skills

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Integrate with Existing Investments

• Link to legacy and enterprise systems
• Bridge Islands of Data
• Share data across LOB applications
• Work with middle-tier components
• Connect multiple VBA-enabled applications
• VBA common language across the desktop and
  throughout the enterprise

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Customizing Applications

• 75 of companies will buy over build in 1999 up
  from 50 today1
• Faster delivery and lower initial cost
• One size doesnt fit all
• 79 of companies customize the applications they
  bought2
• VBA enables buy and customize alternative

1. Gartner Group Traditional Client/Server AD
Tool Market Shrinking 6/27/97 2. Forrester
Group Packaged Application Strategies, 5/1/96
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Professional Developer TrendsDevelopment
language usage
Percentages project to 2.4 million Pro Developers
in the US. Source Market Decisions
Corporation, 1996-1997 US Developer Tracking
Study, international projection based on of
Microsoft license sales
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Demo
Visual Basic for Applications

• Integrating VBA enabled applications

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Manufacturing
Digital Nervous System
Executing on plannedevents
Reacting to unplannedevents
Variable Configurations
Competitor Initiatives
New Govt Regulations
Smaller Batch Sizes

• High Productivity
• High Quality
• Low Cost

• Flexibility
• Integration
• Quick Reaction

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A Manufacturing DNS World
Analysis
HMI/Control
Simulation
MRP/ Finance
Hardware/ Shop Floor
Product Design
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PI-ProcessBook/VBAProduct Demo

• Alton Loe, OSI Software

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Office 97 Developer EditionEverything for
building and distributing solutions with Office 97

• Office Pro Plus
• Microsoft Access run time, Microsoft Access,
  Visual SourceSafe integration, Setup Wizard,
  ActiveX Controls, Jet Replication Tools
• Printed documentation
• MSDN Office Developer Sampler

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Resources And Training

• Office Developer Forum
• http//www.microsoft.com/officedev/
• White papers, sample code, articles, events
• Developer conferences
• VBiTs, TechEd
• VBA Solutions Conference (http//www.vbaconference
  .com)
• Publications
• VBPJ , Microsoft Office VBA Developer

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Mark Your Calendars!

• New Orleans, LouisianaJune 1-5,
  1998http//www.microsoft.com/events/teched
• Strong solutions focus
• Many Office/VBA sessions
• Demo area, peer talk, expo hall, more

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Mark Your Calendars!

• Office and VBA Solutions Conference and
  Exposition
• Informant Communications Microsoft
• London, England
• July 12-15, 1998
• ANDOctober, 1998, Los Angeles
• Office development sessions
• VBA ISV sessions
• Expo hall and more

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